Peter Gynd Exhibition
February 3 – March 9, 2024
Opening Reception: Saturday, February 3, 6 – 8pm
Artist Talk: Saturday, February 3, 7pm
at qathet Art Centre
Viewing Hours: monday, tuesday, wednesday – noon to 5PM
10989 Dunlop Road is a solo exhibition of recent oil paintings by Peter Gynd.
Known for his expressive and abstracted landscape paintings, Peter Gynd’s work is often a ‘long look’ at a particular subject. This manifests as extended series’ where Gynd explores the same scene, object, or compositions in a multitude of styles and varying degrees of abstraction.
10989 Dunlop Road focuses on a series of paintings Gynd made from his mother garden in kwekwenis (Lang Bay), British Columbia, Canada. In this series—collectively titled after the location’s address—Gynd presents multiple iterations on a grouping of trees surrounding the entrance to the south-of-town property.
Lang Bay became a place of refuge for Gynd and his wife during the pandemic when they left their New York City apartment to return to the west coast. This garden scene in particular emerged for Gynd as a symbol of rebirth and of renewed spiritual grounding. Gardens are traditionally places associated with growth and care and have been represented throughout art history as spaces where the magical and divine dwell—something which is definitely true in Gynd’s work.
Prominently featured in the paintings are a variety of cedar trees as well as a large fir which is ever present in each scene. To date Gynd has made over 60 paintings in this series. A special grouping of 30 of these paintings created on location during the summer and fall of 2023 is the focus of the show. These luscious and joyfully coloured paintings will be presented at the qathet Art Centre in an exhibition that invites visitors to journey through Gynd’s interpretations and indulge themselves in the lush brushwork and expressively optimistic compositions. Ranging in scale from intimate 10×8 inch plein air oil-on-board works to 4×3 foot gestural and abstracted studio paintings on linen, something is sure to connect and resonate with everyone.
About the Artist
Peter Gynd is a fifth-generation artist and an independent curator. He grew up amongst the coastal rainforests of western Canada and is known for his paintings that pull influence from his experiences in nature. Peter studied old masters oil painting and classical sculpture at the Vancouver Academy of Art before pursuing a BFA in Glassblowing from the Alberta College of Art and Design (2006) and an MFA in Painting from Brooklyn College in New York (2022). From 2011–2020 Peter lived and worked in New York City, painting from his Brooklyn studio and working as an independent curator and Director of Lesley Heller Gallery in Manhattan. His paintings have been shown in Canada and the United states and are held in private collections around the world. Peter Gynd has taught oil painting workshops in Canada, Italy, Mexico, and the United States; and was a graduate teaching fellow at Brooklyn College. He is currently based between qathet, British Columbia and Houston, Texas.
Please see www.petergynd.com for additional information.